Logo

SAVE up to 67% vs. a typical high street Solicitor

Providing Accessible and Affordable Legal Services to All

[email protected]
0151 230 8931

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Blog
  • Legal Services
    • Breach of Contract Claims
    • Consumer Rights
    • Debt/Money Claims
    • Deed Polls
    • Direct Access Barristers
    • Flight Delay Claims – Regulation 261
    • Landlord & Tenant Disputes/Claims
    • Legal Costs
    • Legal Document Drafting
    • Paralegal Support
    • Process/Document Serving
    • Reduce your Solicitors’ Bill
    • Small Claims
    • Will Drafting
    • If we can’t help, try…..
      • Direct Access Barristers
  • Downloads
  • Testimonials
  • Contact Us
  • Client Area
    • Pay your Invoice
    • Document Management

Landlords/Letting Agents – Are you complying with the law?

November 18, 2016 By White Collar Legal and Admin

On the 16th November 2016, we were instructed by a firm of solicitors to represent a landlord in what should have been a very simple case where a tenant had made an application to suspend a warrant of possession. The warrant was due to be executed on the 17th November 2016 and the warrant of possession arose from an expired Section 21 notice.

The landlords were private landlords and they had instructed a letting agent to manage this property and deal with the usual issues regarding collection of rent and notices seeking possession. This is a case where the tenancy started in December 2015 after the changes from the Deregulation Act came into force. Many of you should know by now (and if you don’t then you need to know) that for any tenancy starting after the 1st October 2015, landlords and letting agents must provide tenants with an energy performance certificate, gas safety certificate and the government publication, “How to rent: The checklist for renting in England”.

In this case, the letting agents had provided the gas safety certificate and the energy performance certificate but had not provided the how to rent checklist. This of course would play a pertinent part in the case later.

The tenancy was entered into on the 7th December 2015 and on the 8th April 2016, the letting agents served (correctly) a Section 21 notice giving the tenants two months to leave the property. The tenants acknowledged the Section 21 notice by telephone seven days before it was due to expire and told the lettings agent that they were looking for another property. However, the tenants did not leave the property at the expiry date and the letting agents instructed solicitors to commence possession proceedings under the accelerated procedure. Now we cannot say for sure what the solicitors advised the letting agents regarding compliance with the new regulations but a claim form was prepared and issued at the County Court at Burnley under the accelerated procedure.

The claim form was posted to the Defendants on the 31st August 2016 and it was deemed served on the 2nd September 2016. The tenants did not respond to the claim form and on the 16th September 2016, the solicitors requested the court to make a possession order which it did so on the 26th September 2016.

The tenants still did not leave the property and on the 14th October 2016, the solicitors requested a warrant of possession. The warrant was issued on the 19th October 2016 and an appointment was made for bailiffs to attend the property on the 17th November 2016.

The tenants sought advice from a family friend and on the 10th November 2016, the tenants made an application to suspend the warrant of possession on the basis that firstly, the how to rent checklist had not been provided at the start of the tenancy, and secondly, that the right to rent checks had not been completed either.

We were instructed by the solicitors on the 15th November 2016 to attend the hearing and at that hearing, our Philip Nam met with the letting agent and discussed the claim with them and also discussed whether they had complied with the new rules for tenancies starting after the 1st October 2015. We were shocked to hear that the letting agent had instructed me that the changes did not come into force until the 1st February 2016! This of course is partly correct in that the right to rent checks in England (apart from West Midlands) came into force on this day. However, the other requirements regarding service of the how to rent ‘booklet’ came into force for any tenancy starting after the 1st October 2015. As a result, we advised the letting agent that it was likely that the court would be ordering that the Section 21 notice was invalid and that the possession order should be dismissed.

Luckily (in a stay of execution), at the hearing the Judge confirmed that he wasn’t sure of this new law and therefore he adjourned the matter for 14 days to allow the parties to prepare submissions on the effects on the Deregulation Act. Obviously, if the Judge was fully aware of this new law, then he would of immediately awarded the application, dismissed the claim for possession and made an order that the Section 21 notice was invalid.

It is therefore very important for all landlords and letting agents to ensure they are fully compliant with the new regulations for tenancies starting after the 1st October 2015 and to instruct someone who attends court on a regular basis on landlord and tenant matters to ensure that you are fully protected in terms of all the relevant legislation arising from this issue and others.

Therefore, if you require any assistance as a Landlord or Letting agent, please telephone us on 0151 230 8931 or visit www.whitecollarlegalandadmin.com

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: Advocacy, Civil Litigation, Landlords, Letting Agent, Litigation, Repossession, Tenant

Reasons to Talk to Us

SAVE up to 67% versus a typical high street solicitor
FREE Initial consultation
Fully Insured, Experienced and Regulated
White Collar has the knowledge and expertise you need
We are easy to talk to and give advice in plain English
If we can’t do the job, we know someone that can
Nationwide and Worldwide coverage

Contact Us

  • 1 Old Hall Street, Liverpool, L3 9HF
  • [email protected]
  • 0151 230 8931
  • 0151 808 1320

Online Enquiry

* indicates required field
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The information you provide will be only used by us to administer your enquiry and any response. Use of this form does not create an attorney-client relationship and information transmitted will not necessarily be treated as privileged or confidential. If you are a client, please get in touch with your usual firm contact directly for the most timely response.

Twitter

Tweets by @WhiteCollarQPAS

Services for Solicitors

We provide Costs Drafting, Advocacy, Locum Fee Earner and Litigation Support services to Solicitors:

Costs Drafting

We have 13 years experience in Civil & Commercial Litigation, Personal Injury and Costs therefore we are able to draft bills accurately and in a compliant manner to ensure maximum recovery at speed and at low cost.

Our payment terms are also competitive:

  • Bill drafting fees reduced as per recovery – ensuring that we will recover the most we can for you;
  • Fixed negotiation fees – to ensure speed and efficiency;
  • Quick turnaround with maximum settlements – to aid your cash flow;
  • Capped fees for Paying Party work;

We are simply interested in good, honest costs drafting, negotiation and advice and our aim is to ensure that your needs come first.

Therefore, unlike other costs drafting firms, we will provide you with the advice before negotiation commences so we both know where we stand in terms of likely recovery and cash flow.

With a FREE Courier Service, we not give us a try for one file and compare us.

Locum Fee Earner/Litigation Support

Having over 12 years experience in civil litigation, We have been assisting solicitor firms with their busy case loads by acting as a fee earner within their firms.

Advocacy

We are able to cover hearings across the North West and North Wales (we can travel further if needed) as your agent for Infant Settlement Approval Hearings, Possession Hearings (Landlord/Tenant and Mortgage) and Costs Hearings.  We can also cover applications, small claims and enforcement hearings.
With fixed fees being applied in many cases, we understand that the lower you pay for advocacy services, the more profit costs you keep for yourself therefore, our fees are reasonable and for most of our local Courts are even cheaper than those charged by the major advocacy agencies.

Administration Services

With over 10 years administration experience, White Collar can offer a wide range of services to assist you and your business in achieving its goals as well as allowing you to save time on things that matter most – your business. The following list is an example of those services offered by White Collar.

  • Copy Typing
  • CV Drafting
  • Data Entry
  • Form Creation
  • General Administration
  • Invoice/Receipt Management/Creation
  • List Building
  • Mail Forwarding/Scanning
  • Online Contact Management
  • Online Diary Management
  • Online Services
  • Powerpoint Presentations
  • Spreadsheets
  • Word Documents

White Collar Legal & Admin

We have over 13 years legal and administrative experience so we can help you with your most of your legal and admin needs.

Reasons to Talk to Us

SAVE up to 67% versus a typical high street solicitor
FREE Initial consultation
Fully Insured, Experienced and Regulated
White Collar has the knowledge and expertise you need
We are easy to talk to and give advice in plain English
If we can’t do the job, we know someone that can
Nationwide and Worldwide coverage

Like us or follow us

  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

We are members of…

PPR Practising Certificate

Business Approval Register

Lawshare

Civil Litigation solicitors Wirral

Clerksroom Direct

PPH Logo

Privacy Policy | © 2023 White Collar (Legal and Admin) Ltd
Website hosting by Lift Legal Marketing · Log in


The White Collar & Scales Logo is a registered trademark owned by White Collar (Legal and Admin) Ltd. White Collar (Legal and Admin) Ltd is a company registered in England and Wales; Reg No.09105650; Registered Address: 1 Old Hall Street, Liverpool, L3 9HF. VAT Number: 273 5212 16.

Data Protection Registration: ZA069814. Our Privacy Policy can be accessed by Clicking Here
Philip Nam F.Inst.Pa G.CILEx Q.Med.Pa (Director) is a Fellow of the Institute of Paralegals (member#207496) and is authorised and voluntarily regulated by the Professional Paralegal Register.
The legal information given on this website is subject to our Legal Information Disclaimer which can be accessed by Clicking Here (opens in a PDF)
Our website use disclaimer can be found by Clicking Here (opens in a PDF)

This site tracks visits anonymously using cookies. Close this dialogue to confirm you are happy with that or find out more in the Privacy Policy. Agree and close
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT